Thoughts on Microsoft…

I’m an Apple fanboi. I love how I have very little trouble with my hardware and software integration. But… I make my living as a .NET (C# & VB) developer. So, I like to at least TRY to keep up with Microsoft… And there’s a LOT to keep up with, and lately, they have been very good!

Over the summer Microsoft launched both Visual Studio 2015 and Windows 10. To the tech industry, these have both been very bold steps. Windows 10 has been build one the concept of ‘update often’. Microsoft is seeding updates to Windows 10 to the testing community almost every other week. And yes, it needs it, but that’s because Microsoft is trying something very different. They are actually listening to their customers and trying to address concerns as quickly as possible. It is refreshing. Windows 10 does have some issues, but they seem to be getting better with each iteration. As an end user, I’ve been VERY thrilled at how Window 10 is doing, and it makes me happy to be a .NET developer. The Visual Studio IDE is awesome, and having a OS that helps rather than hinders is great.

Microsoft ALSO had a hardware announcement recently. From all appearances, Microsoft is finally tired of waiting for a partner to step up and create interesting, innovative hardware. Microsoft has finally decided to follow Apple in creating both the hardware and the software. The latest Windows Phones, Surface Pro 4, and the new Surface Book are all great products that I hope do well. Yes, they are much higher on the cost scale than most ‘normal’ Windows boxes, but, in my opinion, I think that they NEED to be. We, as consumers, want everything to be free or cheap. Unfortunately, if a company does not make money, there’s no way to provide a product and/or support. That’s one of the things with cheap hardware is that there’s usually no one to support it. I love the fact that Microsoft IS charging more. I’d gladly recommend a Surface Pro to someone needing a Windows tablet. Heck, I may even pick one up for myself!

I think Microsoft is definitely on the right track, after floundering for the last 7 or 8 years. Hopefully, they will continue to improve!